The program includes keynote addresses by Ken Alex, a Senior Policy Advisor to Governor Jerry Brown and Craig McNamara, of Sierra Orchards, a discussion with farmers about their perspectives on the ongoing drought, and workshops ranging from Growing Clean Energy on Farms toConserving Working Lands as a Climate Protection Strategy. The Summit ends with a wine and cheese reception.

The California Climate & Agriculture Summit takes place March 24th and 25th at the UC Davis Conference Center. For more information and to register, visit CalCAN.

The humane farming and food safety nonprofit, Food Animal Concerns Trust (FACT), is providing scholarships to cover registration expenses at select sustainable agriculture conferences this year. Humane livestock and poultry producers who are currently employed by a working, independent family farm are invited to apply.

The Oneida Nation, First Nations Development Institute, Intertribal Agriculture Council and Northeast Wisconsin Technical College invite you to this year’s Food Sovereignty Summit. Learn from Native nonprofits and Native nations about best practices in the areas of food sovereignty and food systems.

This year’s summit will be held April 15-18 in Green Bay, Wisconsin.

The summit offers three professional training tracks (though attendees can attend sessions in multiple tracks):

NOFA-NY has announced their 2nd Annual Organic Dairy and Field Crop Conference will take place on Friday, March 1st in Auburn, NY. The conference will consist of business, dairy, and field crop workshop tracks, including a half-day intensive workshop on the “Transition to Organic Dairy Management.” A pre-conference field day on February 28th at Cornell University in Ithaca, NY, will focus on “Cereal Grains Seed Production and NYS Certified Foundation Seed Program.”

The Ohio Ecological Food and Farm Association (OEFFA) is offering two pre-conference workshops on Friday, Feb. 15th as a part of their upcoming annual conference. OEFFA program director and event organizer Renee Hunt explains, “While our two-day conference covers a wide range of topics geared toward farmers, gardeners, and consumers, our full day pre-conference workshops are able to drill deeper, giving specialty crop growers and livestock farmers the skills they need to take their businesses to the next level.”

Chris Blanchard of Rock Spring Farm in Iowa will lead a workshop on “Post-Harvest Handling, Food Safety, and GAP: Making It Work on a Real Farm,” covering how to establish or improve food safety practices. The second workshop, “From Our Grazing Experience,” will be led by Troy Bishopp, “The Grass Whisperer,” along with a panel of experienced graziers. Participants will learn about lengthening the grazing season, specific feeding strategies, business profitability, soil health, and much more.

On February 8th at Central Carolina Community College (CCCC) in Pittsboro, NC, the Abundance Foundation will host a one-day conference on “Farming Strategies in Today’s Changing Climate.” Farmers, agricultural scientists, technical assistance providers, and farm advocates are encouraged to register for the conference, where presentations, workshops, and discussion will address adaptation and mitigation practices in the wake of climate-related challenges facing agriculture and local foodsheds.

A project of Farm Aid, RAFI-USA and several cooperating partners, the Farm Advocate Link is a newly established national network of farm advocates whose goal is to honor and support established advocates, welcome new and aspiring advocates, and provide ongoing training, professional development and a shared sense of purpose to farm advocates across the country.

‘Tis the season for farm conferences! Take advantage of the many opportunities to network with other farmers, farm service providers, and farm activists this winter! See what’s happening in your region and get registered for fantastic conferences happening near you. Farm Aid staff will be present at the conferences marked with an asterisk (*).

Share this post:

About the Resource Spotlight

This blog shines a spotlight on some of Farm Aid's favorite resources, tools and other timely opportunities for family farmers and farm advocates.

Also be sure to check out the rest of Farm Aid's Farmer Resource Network, to search through our online directory of farm service providers nationwide, read about some of our farmer heroes, or contact Farm Aid staff for direct assistance.